Uyghur Human Rights Protection Act

II 117TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION S. 1080 To designate residents of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region as Priority 2 refugees of special humanitarian concern, and for other purposes. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES APRIL 13, 2021 Mr. COONS (for himself and Mr. RUBIO) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary A BILL To designate residents of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region as Priority 2 refugees of special humanitarian concern, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Uyghur Human Rights 4 Protection Act’’. 5 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 6 Congress finds the following: 7 (1) The Government of the People’s Republic of 8 China (referred to in this section as the ‘‘PRC’’) has 9 a long history of repressing Turkic Muslims and 10 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:31 Apr 29, 2021 Jkt 019100 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1080.IS S1080 tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS 2 •S 1080 IS other predominantly Muslim ethnic groups, particu- 1 larly Uyghurs, living in the Xinjiang Uyghur Auton- 2 omous Region (referred to in this section as 3 ‘‘Xinjiang’’). Central and regional Chinese govern- 4 ment policies have systematically discriminated 5 against and oppressed these groups by denying them 6 a range of civil and political rights, particularly free- 7 dom of religion. 8 (2) In May 2014, the PRC Government 9 launched its ‘‘Strike Hard Against Violent Ter- 10 rorism’’ campaign, using wide-scale, internationally 11 linked threats of terrorism as a pretext to justify 12 pervasive restrictions on, and serious human rights 13 violations against, members of predominantly Mus- 14 lim communities in Xinjiang. The August 2016 pro- 15 motion of former Tibet Autonomous Region Party 16 Secretary Chen Quanguo, whose record of brutality 17 distinguished his tenure in Tibet, to be a Politburo 18 member and Party Secretary of Xinjiang accelerated 19 the crackdown across the region. 20 (3) Scholars, human rights organizations, jour- 21 nalists, and think tanks have provided ample evi- 22 dence substantiating the establishment by the PRC 23 Government of internment camps. Since 2017, the 24 PRC Government has detained more than 1,000,000 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:31 Apr 29, 2021 Jkt 019100 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1080.IS S1080 tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS 3 •S 1080 IS Uyghurs, ethnic Kazakhs, Kyrgyz, and members of 1 other predominantly Muslim groups in these camps. 2 (4) The PRC Government’s actions against 3 Uyghurs, ethnic Kazakhs, Kyrgyz, and members of 4 other predominantly Muslim groups in Xinjiang vio- 5 late international human rights laws and norms, in- 6 cluding— 7 (A) the International Convention on the 8 Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimina- 9 tion, done at New York December 21, 1965, to 10 which the PRC has acceded; 11 (B) the Convention against Torture and 12 Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment 13 or Punishment, done at New York December 14 10, 1984, which the PRC has signed and rati- 15 fied; 16 (C) the Convention on the Prevention and 17 Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, done at 18 Paris December 9, 1948, which the PRC has 19 signed and ratified; 20 (D) the International Covenant on Civil 21 and Political Rights, done at New York Decem- 22 ber 19, 1966, which the PRC has signed; and 23 (E) the Universal Declaration of Human 24 Rights, adopted December 10, 1948, and the 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:31 Apr 29, 2021 Jkt 019100 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1080.IS S1080 tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS 4 •S 1080 IS International Labor Organization’s Forced 1 Labor Convention (No. 29) and Convention 2 Concerning the Abolition of Forced Labor (No. 3 105). 4 (5) Senior Chinese Communist Party officials 5 bear direct responsibility for gross human rights vio- 6 lations committed against Uyghurs, ethnic Kazakhs, 7 Kyrgyz, and members of other predominantly Mus- 8 lim groups, including— 9 (A) the arbitrary detention of more than 10 1,000,000 Uyghurs, ethnic Kazakhs, Kyrgyz, 11 and members of other predominantly Muslim 12 groups; 13 (B) the separation of working age adults 14 from their children and elderly parents; and 15 (C) the integration of forced labor into 16 supply chains. 17 (6) People held arbitrarily in detention facilities 18 and internment camps in Xinjiang— 19 (A) have described forced political indoc- 20 trination, torture, beatings, food deprivation, 21 sexual assault, coordinated campaigns to reduce 22 birth rates among Uyghurs and other Turkic 23 Muslims through forced sterilizations and 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:31 Apr 29, 2021 Jkt 019100 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1080.IS S1080 tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS 5 •S 1080 IS forced abortions, and denial of religious, cul- 1 tural, and linguistic freedoms; and 2 (B) have confirmed that they were told by 3 guards that the only way to secure their release 4 was to demonstrate adequate political loyalty. 5 (7) Poor conditions and lack of medical treat- 6 ment at such detention facilities and internment 7 camps appear to have contributed to the deaths of 8 some detainees, including the elderly and infirm. Re- 9 cent media reports indicate that since 2019 the PRC 10 Government has newly constructed, expanded, or 11 fortified at least 60 detention facilities with higher 12 security or prison-like features. 13 (8) In September 2018, United Nations High 14 Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet 15 noted the ‘‘deeply disturbing allegations of large- 16 scale arbitrary detentions of Uighurs and other pre- 17 dominantly Muslim communities, in so-called reedu- 18 cation camps across Xinjiang’’. 19 (9) In 2019, the Congressional-Executive Com- 20 mission on China concluded, based on available evi- 21 dence, that the establishment and actions committed 22 in the internment camps in Xinjiang may constitute 23 ‘‘crimes against humanity’’. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:31 Apr 29, 2021 Jkt 019100 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1080.IS S1080 tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS 6 •S 1080 IS (10) Uyghurs and ethnic Kazaks resettled or 1 residing in third countries report being subjected to 2 threats and harassment from PRC officials. 3 (11) There is a backlog of approximately 4 3,600,000 visa applicants waiting to enter the 5 United States. Wait times for certain visas range be- 6 tween 5 and 18 years. 7 SEC. 3. DESIGNATION OF CERTAIN RESIDENTS OF THE 8 XINJIANG UYGHUR AUTONOMOUS REGION. 9 (a) IN GENERAL.—Persons of special humanitarian 10 concern eligible for Priority 2 processing under the refugee 11 resettlement priority system shall include— 12 (1) Uyghurs and members of other predomi- 13 nately Turkic or Muslim ethnic groups, including 14 Kazakhs and Kyrgyz, who are residents of, or fled 15 from, the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region and 16 who suffered persecution or have a well-founded fear 17 of persecution on account of their imputed or actual 18 religious or ethnic identity; 19 (2) Uyghurs and members of other predomi- 20 nately Turkic or Muslim ethnic groups, including 21 Kazakhs and Kyrgyz, who have been formally 22 charged, detained, or convicted by the Government 23 of the People’s Republic of China on account of their 24 peaceful actions in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autono- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:31 Apr 29, 2021 Jkt 019100 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1080.IS S1080 tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS 7 •S 1080 IS mous Region, as described in the Uyghur Human 1 Rights Policy Act of 2020 (Public Law 116–145); 2 and 3 (3) the spouses, children, and parents (as such 4 terms are defined in subsections (a) and (b) of sec- 5 tion 101 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 6 U.S.C. 1101)) of individuals described in paragraph 7 (1) or (2), except such parents who are citizens of 8 a country other than the People’s Republic of China. 9 (b) PROCESSING OF XINJIANG UYGHUR AUTONO- 10 MOUS REGION REFUGEES.—The processing of individuals 11 described in subsection (a) for classification as refugees 12 may occur in China or in another foreign country. 13 (c) ELIGIBILITY FOR ADMISSION AS REFUGEES.—An 14 alien may not be denied the opportunity to apply for ad- 15 mission as a refugee under this section primarily because 16 such alien— 17 (1) qualifies as an immediate relative of a cit- 18 izen of the United States; or 19 (2) is eligible for admission to the United 20 States under any other immigrant classification. 21 (d) FACILITATION OF ADMISSIONS.—Certain appli- 22 cants for admission to the United States from the 23 Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region may not be denied 24 primarily on the basis of a politically motivated arrest, de- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:31 Apr 29, 2021 Jkt 019100 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1080.IS S1080 tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS 8 •S 1080 IS tention, or other adverse government action taken against 1 such applicant as a result of the participation by such ap- 2 plicant in religious, cultural, or protest activities. 3 (e) BILATERAL DIPLOMACY.—The Secretary of State 4 shall prioritize bilateral diplomacy with foreign countries 5 hosting former residents of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autono- 6 mous Region who face significant diplomatic pressure 7 from the Government of the People’s Republic of China. 8 (f) EXCLUSION FROM NUMERICAL LIMITATIONS.— 9 Aliens eligible for Priority 2 processing under this section 10 who are provided refugee status shall not be counted 11 against any numerical limitation under section 201, 202, 12 203, or 207 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 13 U.S.C. 1151, 1152, 1153, and 1157). 14 (g) REPORTING REQUIREMENTS.— 15 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days 16 after the date of the enactment of this Act, and 17 every 180 days thereafter, the Secretary of State 18 and the Secretary of Homeland Security shall jointly 19 submit a report containing the matters described in 20 paragraph (2) to— 21 (A) the Committee on the Judiciary of the 22 Senate; 23 (B) the Committee on Foreign Relations of 24 the Senate; 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:31 Apr 29, 2021 Jkt 019100 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1080.IS S1080 tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS 9 •S 1080 IS (C) the Committee on the Judiciary of the 1 House of Representatives; and 2 (D) the Committee on Foreign Affairs of 3 the House of Representatives. 4 (2) MATTERS TO BE INCLUDED.—Each report 5 required under paragraph (1) shall include— 6 (A) the total number of applications from 7 individuals described in subsection (a) that are 8 pending at the end of the reporting period; 9 (B) the average wait-times and the number 10 of such applicants who, at the end of the re- 11 porting period, are waiting for— 12 (i) a prescreening interview with a re- 13 settlement support center; 14 (ii) an interview with U.S. Citizenship 15 and Immigration Services; 16 (iii) the completion of security checks; 17 or 18 (iv) receipt of a final decision after 19 completion of an interview with U.S. Citi- 20 zenship and Immigration Services; and 21 (C) the number of individuals who applied 22 for refugee status under this section whose ap- 23 plication was denied, disaggregated by the rea- 24 son for each such denial. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:31 Apr 29, 2021 Jkt 019100 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1080.IS S1080 tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS 10 •S 1080 IS (3) FORM.—Each report required under para- 1 graph (1) shall be submitted in unclassified form, 2 but may include a classified annex. 3 (4) PUBLIC REPORTS.—The Secretary of State 4 shall make each report submitted under this sub- 5 section available to the public on the internet website 6 of the Department of State. 7 (h) SATISFACTION OF OTHER REQUIREMENTS.— 8 Aliens eligible under this section for Priority 2 processing 9 under the refugee resettlement priority system shall be 10 considered to satisfy the requirements under section 207 11 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1157) 12 for admission to the United States. 13 SEC. 4. WAIVER OF IMMIGRANT STATUS PRESUMPTION. 14 (a) IN GENERAL.—The presumption under the first 15 sentence of section 214(b) of the Immigration and Nation- 16 ality Act (8 U.S.C. 1184(b)) that every alien is an immi- 17 grant until the alien establishes that the alien is entitled 18 to nonimmigrant status shall not apply to an alien de- 19 scribed in subsection (b). 20 (b) ALIEN DESCRIBED.— 21 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), an 22 alien described in this subsection is an alien who— 23 (A)(i) is an Uyghur or a member of an- 24 other predominately Turkic or Muslim ethnic 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:31 Apr 29, 2021 Jkt 019100 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1080.IS S1080 tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS 11 •S 1080 IS group, including Kazakhs and Kyrgyz, and was 1 a resident of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous 2 Region on January 1, 2021; or 3 (ii) fled the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous 4 Region after June 30, 2009, and resides in a 5 different province of China or in another for- 6 eign country; 7 (B) is seeking entry to the United States 8 to apply for asylum under section 208 of the 9 Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 10 1158); and 11 (C) is facing repression in the Xinjiang 12 Uyghur Autonomous Region by the Government 13 of the People’s Republic of China including— 14 (i) forced and arbitrary detention in- 15 cluding in internment and reeducation 16 camps; 17 (ii) forced political indoctrination, tor- 18 ture, beatings, food deprivation, and denial 19 of religious, cultural, and linguistic free- 20 doms; 21 (iii) forced labor; 22 (iv) forced separation from family 23 members; or 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:31 Apr 29, 2021 Jkt 019100 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1080.IS S1080 tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS 12 •S 1080 IS (v) other forms of systemic threats, 1 harassment, and gross human rights viola- 2 tions. 3 (2) EXCLUSION.—An alien described in this 4 subsection does not include any alien who— 5 (A) is a citizen or permanent resident of a 6 country other than the People’s Republic of 7 China; or 8 (B) is determined to have committed a 9 gross violation of human rights. 10 (c) INTENTION TO ABANDON FOREIGN RESI- 11 DENCE.—The filing by an alien described in subsection (b) 12 of an application for a preference status under section 204 13 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1154) 14 or otherwise seeking permanent residence in the United 15 States shall not be deemed as evidence of the alien’s inten- 16 tion [Text truncated for display. Full text available on Congress.gov.]